Hadfield Dominates After Close Under 2-Litre Touring Car Battle

Simon Hadfield drove to a commanding victory in the Sir John Whitmore Trophy for Under 2 Litre Touring Cars at the 2013 Silverstone Classic.

Hadfield took over from team-mate Leo Voyazides near the halfway mark of the 50 minute race, and began his charge from the middle of the field, passing everything in sight and taking the victory by over 30 seconds.

“It was a lot of fun” said Voyazides. “I was racing against a lot of young hot shots and it was excellent fun. I think the pitstops helped as other teams put their slower driver in to the car and Simon just drove his way to the top.”

The first half of the race had been dominated by a captivating battle between the two BMW 1800s of Andy Priaulx and Jackie Oliver and the two Ford Lotus Cortinas of Richard Meaden and Phil Keen.

Priaulx took the lead from the start and appeared to be pulling out a comfortable lead ahead of Oliver, while the Cortinas battled for the final podium spot before reeling in the leaders and creating a four car dice for the lead.

Oliver dropped off the leading battle before handing the car over to Richard Shaw, while Keen began a charge on the three-time World Touring Car Champion, Priaulx. The BMW driver was evidently struggling to keep the Cortina behind on the straights, but very defensive positioning in to the corners kept the DTM driver at the top of the field.

As the two battled, they allowed Meaden to close in and join the scrap, who eventually squeezed past both drivers to take the lead, ahead of Priaulx and Keen. The battle continued until the pit stops, where the race changed completely. Hadfield had worked his way up in to a strong position during the pit stop cycle and had an unassailable lead by the time everyone had completed their required stop, taking the win ahead of Mark Jones’ Cortina and Shaw’s BMW.

“I definitely enjoyed it,” Priaulx told TheCheckeredFlag.co.uk. “It’s always fun to lead a race, and we were dicing for 1st and 2nd for the majority of the stint. The Lotus was much quicker in the straights but I was able to keep ahead in the corners and it was just bloody good fun.”